Read-Think-b4-u-Write

Do you want to fly? Would you like be invisible? How about superhuman strength or X-ray vision? My superpower of choice is to be able to speak every language in the Universe - from Elven to Italian, Mandarin to Romulan, cat to bat, and everything in between. I'd like to hear (or receive, if it's a telepathic language) everybody's story in their own language and understand all the delicate nuances intelligent beings can fashion. Speaking of stories . . . think of the stories these guys could tell. Imagine talking to Thor in Asgardian or being able to translate all the spells from the stacks at Hogwart's (BTW - the best class EVER!). So what superpower would you choose?

The World Wildlife Fund's 2012 Living Planet report notes that "we are using 50 per cent more resources than the Earth can provide. By 2030, even two planets will not be enough." Rising populations and rising incomes have and will lead to a larger human footprint on the planet. Are we a plague? Ask Agent Smith who tells the captive Morpheus in The Matrix ? "Every mammal on this planet instinctively develops a natural equilibrium with the surrounding environment but you humans do not. You move to an area and you multiply and multiply until every natural resource is consumed and the only way you can survive is to spread to another area. There is another organism on this planet that follows the same pattern. Do you know what it is? A virus. Human beings are a disease, a cancer of this planet. You're a plague and we are the cure." Yikes! I don't think we need to get that extreme, but how do we balance population while protecting nature? How do ...

Comics often present a world where science (fiction) meets art--and what an inspired vision. Comics are filled with things like shields that can absorb and store power, hammers that control lightening, wireless powering, suits that give you superhuman power and interdimensional portals. Sound familiar? It should to anyone who reads and imagines in the Marvel Universe, or anyone who has seen the new Avengers movie. Life's Little Mysteries recently published "5 Awesome Ways 'The Avengers' Bends Physics" that explores the science needed to produce these novel gadgets. Some say "The laws of physics prevent such inventions," but true believers know better--we just haven't figured it out yet. This article is so good that a large portion is pasted below: Captain America's Shield Captain America harnesses the power of "Vibranium," a metal extracted from a meteorite that crashed in Africa. The shield is capable of absorbing, st...

Even though you are just getting ready to enter the working world, it isn't too early to start thinking about how you will exit the working world . . . and hopefully the answer isn't "in a pine box". If you have busted your butt five or six days a week to live in the Bay Area, and plan on retiring to live in the fabulous lifestyle to which you have become accustomed, you better start saving as soon as you graduate from college. The Social Security Trustees report released in April 2012 claims that social security will go broke in 2033 - that's a mere 21 years from now. So what does that mean? Everyone receiving a check in 2033 will have their benefits slashed by 25 percent -- that $1,000 check will be reduced to $750. But will the government really take social security away from your parents and grandparents? Probably not. In other words, if you're over 41, you'll probably be okay, but I'd make some alternative plans just to be on the saf...